OROVILLE &GT;&GT; Although a deadline passed for appealing the Walmart superstore project, bringing the project closer to proceeding, a city official said Friday there is one more step before the project is good to go.

Last month, the Oroville Planning Commission approved resolutions accepting the final environmental reports and a use permit. Opponents had 15 calendar days to appeal the decision. The deadline was 5 p.m. Aug. 12.

City Community Development Director Don Rust said in a phone call Friday that no one filed an appeal. He said it would now be up to Walmart to obtain a building permit and other permits, but he later learned a technicality had to be cleared before Walmart and the they can proceed.

I's been a long journey.

The commission and City Council originally approved the project in 2010, but Davis-based attorney William Kopper filed a lawsuit in Superior Court on behalf of a group called Friends of Oroville.

City Attorney Scott Huber said the judge turned the lawsuit down and said the environmental impact report was fine. Kopper appealed. The appeal court affirmed most of the EIR but required the city to do another greenhouse gas analysis.

The city responded and fulfilled the requirement. The resulting report was one of the documents the Planning Commission approved in July.

Rust said Kopper and other opponents were given appeal applications at the planning meeting, but no one filed an appeal.

Walmart has been trying to build a new facility in Oroville since 2007. The company bought 20.75 acres on Cal Oak Road between Feather River Boulevard and South Fifth Avenue, and plan to build a 200,225-square-foot superstore.

Huber said in order to go forward now, a procedural matter has to be done.

When the appeal court said the environmental report was OK except for the greenhouse gas analysis, the court issued an order to the Superior Court to overrule the trial decision.

Huber and the attorneys representing Walmart have to ask the lower court to dismiss the case.

"It's a perfunctory thing," he said. "It does not mean the project is in jeopardy, it does not mean the Planning Commission's approval is invalid. It means we need to jump through a few procedural hoops to dismiss the Friends of Oroville case."

"Once that is completed, the city should be good to go and can issue building permits," he said.

Huber said he has been coordinating with Walmart's attorneys, and they are thrilled the end is in sight and the Super Walmart will be able to be built in Oroville.

Rust said the failure of Friends of Oroville a good thing for the city and for Walmart.

Walmart spokeswoman Delia Garcia gave the company's response in an e-mail.

"We appreciate the support our Oroville customers have provided throughout our nearly 25 years of service to the community, and we're excited to move one step closer to offering them a new store that will generate additional revenue for the city, create quality jobs in the community, and give customers the benefit of true one-stop shopping on a broad assortment of groceries, merchandise, and pharmacy services."

Although a construction timeline wasn't available yet, Huber said he doesn't anticipate any more lengthy delays.

"We'll need a hearing, but I don't anticipate it will take a significant amount of time," he said.